Kitchen cabinets as a workbench

[Woodie]

I plan my new workshop and want to use kitchen cabinets (ikea) as a workbench. I like the idea of having big drawers underneath for supplies of grips and other stuff that would look "messy" on the table. My only concern is the proper height of the surface. It might be a little to low to work comfortably... Any idea what I can do to raise the table top? The workbench will be wall mounted and needs to be sturdy.

 

thanks a lot for any idea...

[ndlax2340]

Why not just build a workbench out of lumber from Home Depot and put a Craftsman tool chest under it like this one:
http://www.craftsman.com/shc/s/p_10155_12602_00913620000P?vName=Storage+%26+Garage&cName=Tool+Storage&keyword=00913620000&prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=L1

The chest is a bit pricey but its solid as a rock and all drawers are ball bearing which is a must if you put heavy loads in the drawers. You could go cheaper if you don't care so much about the ball bearing drawers but IMO its worth it.

The bench I built is an L shape, one side is 8' long and the other side is 5' long. The work surface is 2' deep and it is about 3.5' high. The entire thing with peg board on the walls ran me about $250 from Home Depot and took about 3 hours to mock up and build. Its completely worth it because I got a massive bullet proof bench with the exact specs I wanted. Oh and don't skimp on plywood for the top sheet, 3/4" is the only way to go.

[Socrates]

[attachment=1121524:IMG_3087_2.JPG][quote name='Woodie' timestamp='1334568844' post='4730070']
I plan my new workshop and want to use kitchen cabinets (ikea) as a workbench. I like the idea of having big drawers underneath for supplies of grips and other stuff that would look "messy" on the table. My only concern is the proper height of the surface. It might be a little to low to work comfortably... Any idea what I can do to raise the table top? [b]The workbench will be wall mounted and needs to be sturdy.
[/b]
thanks a lot for any idea...
[/quote]
I hope by wall mounted you don't mean that the only contact with the house will be the wall as you will not be sturdy. What are the Ikea cabinets made of? I see a lot of particle board in their cabinets so if you do a lot of work, I don't see them lasting long. The logical way to raise it is to put it on a higher base which is easily constructed. I've found that 36" floor to top is a good height (I'm 6'). You also will likely need to beef up the surface so that it is at least 1" thick and dense enough to take any pounding or attachment of accessories (vice, lie-loft, drill press, etc...).

I'm with ndlax, build one instead. Mine was about $600 of materials. 2x4's, plywood, a skill saw and some time.
[attachment=1121524:IMG_3087_2.JPG]

[Hateto3Putt]

Neat and Tidy Socrates! NICE!

Mine looks like a bomb went off........

[ndlax2340]

[quote name='Socrates' timestamp='1334586615' post='4730888']
[quote name='Woodie' timestamp='1334568844' post='4730070']
I plan my new workshop and want to use kitchen cabinets (ikea) as a workbench. I like the idea of having big drawers underneath for supplies of grips and other stuff that would look "messy" on the table. My only concern is the proper height of the surface. It might be a little to low to work comfortably... Any idea what I can do to raise the table top? [b]The workbench will be wall mounted and needs to be sturdy.
[/b]
thanks a lot for any idea...
[/quote]
I hope by wall mounted you don't mean that the only contact with the house will be the wall as you will not be sturdy. What are the Ikea cabinets made of? I see a lot of particle board in their cabinets so if you do a lot of work, I don't see them lasting long. The logical way to raise it is to put it on a higher base which is easily constructed. I've found that 36" floor to top is a good height (I'm 6'). You also will likely need to beef up the surface so that it is at least 1" thick and dense enough to take any pounding or attachment of accessories (vice, lie-loft, drill press, etc...).

I'm with ndlax, build one instead. Mine was about $600 of materials. 2x4's, plywood, a skill saw and some time.
[/quote]

Wow, lumber must cost a ton more in Canada, granted it looks like you used some nicer grade lumber than mine, mine has to be 1.5x-2x the size of yours and so far I'm only in it less than half of what you are.

Either way it looks awesome, great job

[ghostrider]

I did this with my workbench. A few unfinished cabinets from Home Depot and a piece of formica for the top. Workbench in less than an hour

[jmck]

A few thought on IKEA cabinets: They legs they come with are very adjustable. A 36" counter height with them is no problem. For mounting them, they're designed to be attached to a metal rail, which is attached to studs before installing the cabinets. The cabinets more or less "hang" on this metal rail. The backs of the cabinets isn't even particle board--more like pressboard. Nowhere near sturdy enough to hold any weight. The thing to do is, while you're putting them together, cut 2x4s to the inner width of the cabinet. Attach the 2x4s to the two sides of the cabinets with 2.5-3" screws in the upper rear-most part of the cabinet. Set them in place, adjust the legs to the height you want, level them off, screw them to each other, then attach the 2x4s you installed into the studs with 3.5-4" screws. That's how to make them as solid as real cabinets--forget about the metal rail system. There's a lot of dead space behind the drawers so there's plenty of room for the 2x4s.

If you're not comfortable building your own cabinets from scratch, I think you'll be fine using the IKEA stuff with the modification described above. And don't skimp on the countertop. At least 3/4" of good quality plywood--and 1 to 1.5" is better.

[Socrates]

[quote name='ndlax2340' timestamp='1334590970' post='4731260']
[quote name='Socrates' timestamp='1334586615' post='4730888']
[quote name='Woodie' timestamp='1334568844' post='4730070']
I plan my new workshop and want to use kitchen cabinets (ikea) as a workbench. I like the idea of having big drawers underneath for supplies of grips and other stuff that would look "messy" on the table. My only concern is the proper height of the surface. It might be a little to low to work comfortably... Any idea what I can do to raise the table top? [b]The workbench will be wall mounted and needs to be sturdy.
[/b]
thanks a lot for any idea...
[/quote]
I hope by wall mounted you don't mean that the only contact with the house will be the wall as you will not be sturdy. What are the Ikea cabinets made of? I see a lot of particle board in their cabinets so if you do a lot of work, I don't see them lasting long. The logical way to raise it is to put it on a higher base which is easily constructed. I've found that 36" floor to top is a good height (I'm 6'). You also will likely need to beef up the surface so that it is at least 1" thick and dense enough to take any pounding or attachment of accessories (vice, lie-loft, drill press, etc...).

I'm with ndlax, build one instead. Mine was about $600 of materials. 2x4's, plywood, a skill saw and some time.
[/quote]

Wow, lumber must cost a ton more in Canada, granted it looks like you used some nicer grade lumber than mine, mine has to be 1.5x-2x the size of yours and so far I'm only in it less than half of what you are.

Either way it looks awesome, great job
[/quote]
Yeah, we grow and process the lumber, ship it to the US and then they ship it back to us for more. Sounds like a good deal. There really is a lot plywood in the construction plus some hardware to hold it all together. It adds up.

[Woodie]

That looks really nice and stable as a rock. But I wonder if you really need that for club building... I am still confused if I go with the kitchen stuff or build a nice solid workbench from scratch with plywood...
But thanks a lot for all the answers!

[Socrates]

In theory you could use something light weight to build clubs on, but then you add a vice, then a lie loft machine, then you need something tough enough to work on a car part you brought in like a brake caliper and rotor (sometimes you need a bigger hammer) and all of a sudden that Ikea bench isn't looking so good. Mine might be over kill on the sturdy side, but it's not going to move or crumble no matter what I do.

[KaTooM]

VERY nicely done Socrates!!!!

[larrybud]

[quote name='Woodie' timestamp='1334568844' post='4730070']
I plan my new workshop and want to use kitchen cabinets (ikea) as a workbench. I like the idea of having big drawers underneath for supplies of grips and other stuff that would look "messy" on the table. My only concern is the proper height of the surface. It might be a little to low to work comfortably... Any idea what I can do to raise the table top? The workbench will be wall mounted and needs to be sturdy.

thanks a lot for any idea...
[/quote]

If they're base cabinets, it would be 34.5" off the ground. After all, your kitchen countertop is a good height, no?

[ndlax2340]

[quote name='Woodie' timestamp='1334782040' post='4746928']
That looks really nice and stable as a rock. But I wonder if you really need that for club building... I am still confused if I go with the kitchen stuff or build a nice solid workbench from scratch with plywood...
But thanks a lot for all the answers!
[/quote]

If you plan on mounting a vice, bending machine, or anything that is heavy/puts a lot of force on the bench then yes you need it for club building. Always better to over-build something and find out later you didn't need it that strong than under estimate how strong it needs to be and have it break later down the road